Rory McIlroy's Father Knows Best

What Are Reasonable Expectations for a Parental Sports Wager?

Here's a good story: 25-year-old Rory McIlroy of Northern Ireland won the British Open on Sunday, by two strokes, holding off challengers Rickie Fowler and Sergio Garcia at Royal Liverpool in Hoylake, England. It is McIlroy's third major; the only one that eludes him is the Masters, which he nearly won before a final round crumbling in 2011. McIlroy led the Open from Thursday through its conclusion—wire to wire, as they say—and his latest title solidifies his position as the best of golf's next generation. He also made a...